Bringing About the Age of Dark
by The name's JJ
Summary: In the Land of Lordran, the First Flame is fading. The Chosen Undead must venture out in order to rekindle it, lest the world be thrust into the Age of Darkness... But what happens if the Age of Dark occurs? Find out!
1. Chapter 1: Prologue

**Hello and welcome to my fictional form of Dark Souls. There will be multiple changes to the overall world that will become apparent as this story progresses.**

**If you have not played Dark Souls, I highly recommend you do.**

**I do not own in anyway Dark Souls or any of it's characters. **

* * *

A lone figure sat against a wall in a dark and moldy cell. At first glance, he would appear to be a normal human. But upon closer inspection, discrepancies would be revealed. His flesh had a pale reddish color, and was sunken, clinging to his bones and withered muscles. He wore dark leather armor, tattered from disuse and time. A hood covered most of his face. To his left was a sword hilt with about three inches of the blade left on it. He took in a long wheezy breath before keeling over and dying.

For a few moments the body lay still, before the being jolted back to life with a gasp. The muscle had increase in size slightly. He groaned for a moment before grabbing the sword hilt and standing up. He strolled over to the opposite wall and carved a small line in it. "Number 700. I guess I should celebrate somehow." His voice was rough, as though he had just inhaled a handful of sawdust before trying to speak. Small carvings and words covered the walls.

He then went through a series of movements, practicing with the hilt as if the blade were whole again. _Slash, parry, thrust, repeat_. Often he would shift his stance, or the grip on his weapon: pretending to wield a greatsword one moment, and a rapier the next. He moved with the confidence of a trained knight, and with the smoothness of a thief.

After he finished slaying hundreds of imaginary opponents. He begins exercising. Push-ups, handstand push-ups, sit-ups, squats, etc. He did these for hours, until he heard a banging on his cell door. He turned to see a being with glowing red eyes, the skin pulled tight against its skull.

"Oh hello George!" The prisoner says.

He receives a groan in reply.

"How did your date with Theresa go?"

Another groan.

"Do tell?"

A few groans and a growl

"That's just terrible."

a mumble.

"You have a good day too."

A final groan before the creature walks away.

For it was another one like him, save for the poor thing had lost its sanity, and looked more like a skeleton then the prisoner did.

They were both hollow, having been marked with the Darksign. When they died, they lost all of their humanity, and their souls. Considered to be abominations by humanity, they were both cast into the horrid place. There they rotted. Or at least George did. The prisoner dedicated his time to strengthening himself and memorizing all that he had learned before coming here.

The prisoner sighed. "Another day in paradise." He rested against the wall once more. Why was it that most of the cell doors had rusted away, save for his? He must have just been lucky. The other "prisoners" wandered about the small hallway that lead to his cell.

Immersed in his thoughts, he barely noticed the clunking overhead. Suddenly, the corpse of a hollow fell onto the ground in front of him. He looked up to see a person in knight's armor. They gave him a small nod before walking away. He quickly patted the corpse down, finally finding a small key.

Surprisingly, the door's rusted lock still worked. Picking up his sword, he left the small cell he had lived in for roughly four years. He looked back for a moment, wondering if he was really ready to leave this small world of his, and journey into the real one. He shook his head and continued down the hallway.

If only he knew of the horrors and struggles he would face...

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**As this is the prologue, it is rather short. Have no fear! I will try and have longer chapters. Please Review so that you can help me help you by helping me make a better story!**

**2/9/19 edit: Fixed all the typos I could find. I'm going to answer all reviews for each chapter at the beginning of the next.**


	2. Chpater 2: Escaping the Asylum

**Hello, hello, hello. Let me begin by saying thank you to those who followed and reviewed! I'll take the time to answer reviews real quick.**

**Thank you for being patient while I dealt with a few issues! It won't happen again...probably.**

**TheShadowofMordor- THOU HAST REQUESTED JOLLY COOPERATION? THEN THOU SHALT RECEIVETH IT! I was planning to do a sort of party involving that  
group, but I kinda forgot about Tarkus. Gough will get some writing time because he will be crucial to part of the plot. I just don't quite know how yet. Also, thank you for the kind words!**

**ThatOneRandomDude- I know your feels man, I think I ground humanity for about 3 hours to give to Quelaag's sis. To answer your question, yes and no. It's a little bit complicated, and I have an idea which I might not use. She will most definitely live, the only question is how. And since you're looking for more, here's more!**

**Infernus Fenris- Thanks man, It's good to hear that from a great writer like yourself! **

**Shad'own-f - I'm glad you enjoyed it!**

**On that note, please read Infernus's story, Summoned. It is an excellent fic and the one that partially inspired me to write this. He also helped me edit this!**

**Please also read On Love's Tail. It's a wonderful pairing fic, that warms my cold heart (It's 34 degrees at the time of writing).**

**Please note that this story contains violence and language (no smut, because I can't and don't want to)**

**Enjoy the read!**

* * *

The prisoner strolled down the hall, the hollowed ignoring him as he passed. Save for one. He stepped back as "George" smashed him across the face, splitting his lip. For a pile of bones and skin, he was as strong as an ox.

"Shit! George, what are you doing?" He exclaimed. An insane growl was his only reply. He side-stepped as another right hook was thrown. He had no choice. When the next strike came, the prisoner knocked it aside and struck the hollow across the jaw, dislocating it.

This only seemed to enrage the creature, causing it to assault him with a flurry of sloppy strikes. "Come on then you sack of bones!" The prisoner yelled. The creature paused for a moment, before leaning back for another strike.

The prisoner took advantage of this, charged forward, and palm struck the hollow underneath what was left of his chin. He grabbed its arm and threw it over his shoulder and smashed the hollow into the ground. Before it could retaliate, He stomped on its neck, killing it instantly.

The red light in its eyes slowly faded, and a cloud of white rose up from it, before the cloud rushed forward, and was siphoned into the prisoner's chest. For it was there, just above his heart that his Darksign was located.

He took a deep breath as the meager amount of souls flowed into him. He heard a deep thudding and looked to his left. Through narrow bars, he spotted the source. A huge demon had been patrolling a large chamber but paused to stare at him, as though judging him. "Piss off." The prisoner growled. The demon snorted and resumed it's marching

Further down the hall was a small, circular room with water about a foot deep. But before he stepped in, the prisoner noticed that the section just in front of the door was darker than the rest. He tested the water by throwing an old shackle into it. It disappeared in moments.

He took a few steps back before running and leaping over the patch of deep water. He floated in the cool water, enjoying the sensation of having years worth of sweat and grime washed off. "Escape now, wash later." He reminded himself.

He hopped up to his feet and continued, soon reaching a ladder. He clambered up and walked through a stone doorway, as the bars had rusted and fallen apart long ago. It led into a small courtyard, a thinning layer of snow covering and choking the grass. In the center lay a sword planted in a pile of ash and bone. He was intrinsically drawn to it, like a moth to a flame. He reached out, and the ash suddenly burst into flame. A patch of snow melted and the ground dried nearly instantly. Even the water seeped in his clothes evaporated. He felt a slight prickling on his face and found that his lip was perfectly healed.

In front of the fire was a huge pair of doors. The prisoner inspected the courtyard but found that the only other exit was a locked door. Using all of his strength, the prisoner pushed open the large doors. He was met with a large rectangular room. To his left and right stood tall columns surrounded by pottery. There was a large hole in the ceiling above. In front of him lay a pair of even larger doors. He took a step forward but stopped when he heard a loud THUD overhead.

Looking up, he spotted another large demon staring at him, as though it were challenging him to take another step. He glanced over to his left. There was an opening. The demon growled as if it sensed the hollow's plans. It took about five seconds. The hollow sprinted for the doorway while the demon leaped down, sending shards of tile and dust flying.

It was an ugly beast, with tree trunk legs and arms that seemed small compared to its fat body. It was covered in warts and had a pair of tiny, torn, and twisted wings. It swung a massive hammer, intending to smash the prisoner.

The hollow rolled at the last second, tumbling down the stairs beyond the doorway. An iron portcullis slammed down, preventing the abomination from giving chase. He panted heavily, adrenaline still flowing in his veins and his heart threatening to burst. He stumbled down the rest of the stairs as the demon roared in anger, and walked into a small had a small walkway surrounding a pool of water. To his right was another unlit fire, and to his left was a doorway. After he lit the fire, he walked over to the doorway.

He took a single step before he heard a twang. An arrow whizzed past, nicking his right cheek. He jumped backward, then peeked around the corner. At the end of a long, narrow hallway stood a hollow with an old, rotting bow in its hands. To the sides of the hall were a few rooms, and the hall was too narrow for him to dodge the arrows.

He shot his hand out for a moment, which caused the hollow to fire and miss. He then charged forwards, before jumping into one of the side rooms. He rolled into the small room which had a corpse laid against the back wall. The prisoner grinned when he saw that the corpse had a shield lying on top of its chest. After he finished adjusting the leather straps around his arm, he practiced a blocking and a few parrying motions. He then charged back out.

TWANG

Another arrow whizzed toward him. It shattered upon contact with his shield. He continued charging, slowing only to grab a long knife on a corpse between him and the archer.

TWANG

The archer was panicking. The shot went wide.

TWANG

The arrow was easily deflected. The archer turned tail and ran down a hallway to the left. The prisoner pursed him. Before the prisoner could grab it, the hollow produced a dagger from its tattered clothes and spun around, slashing as it did so. The prisoner instinctively parried the slash, throwing the hollow off balance. He then thrust the knife.

It easily slid between the hollow's ribs, puncturing and rupturing its heart. It coughed up a few flecks of blood before falling over, sliding off of the blade with ease.

After recovering from the surge of souls, the prisoner searched the corpse. The bow and arrows were useless, as they had nearly fallen apart during the skirmish. However, there was a small key set. The prisoner gasped, as this was a master key set; a tool used by thieves to open any and all basic locks. Having been a thief in his previous life, the prisoner grinned as he pocketed the key. At the end of the corridor was a set of stairs leading to a wall made of...fog?

He approached the fog wall cautiously. He reached his hand out, expecting the wall to be solid. He was, of course, surprised when his hand went right through and came back cool and damp. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and stepped through. When he opened his eyes, he was on a terrace that surrounded the courtyard with the first bonfire. He walked up a narrow staircase but paused when he heard a rumbling above him.

He barely managed to roll out of the way of a large iron ball. He fell about ten feet onto another set of stone stairs, which lead to the locked door in the courtyard. He opened the door and healed his bruises by sitting next to the fire. He enjoyed the warmth for a few moments before going back up the first stairs.

He investigated a hole in a wall caused by the iron ball. Inside of the small chamber sat a person in knight's armor, the same knight who had freed him.

He rushed over to the wounded knight. They sat upon a pile of rubble with a hole in the ceiling directly above them. Their armor was dented and torn in places, and there were covered in patches of both dry and fresh blood.

The prisoner began peeling pieces off of the knight's armor. "Hey, what's your name?" He asked.

The knight coughed for a few moments. "My name is Oscar, elite knight of Astora." The knight said, his voice hoarse.

"My name's Sigil of Lordran. Now, Oscar, I'm going to carry you down some stairs and set you down next to a bonfire, alright?" Sigil said reassuringly.

"No wait, I need to tell you of my-" The knight argued.

"Save it for when you're not dying." Sigil stated.

Sigil hefted the heavy knight up and carried him down, while Oscar protested the entire way. "I need to tell you!" The knight said, exasperated.

"Nope," Sigil replied.

"Listen to me dammit!" The knight shouted.

"I will when you're healed and can walk." Sigil dismissed him.

"I can walk just fine!" The knight replied.

"Tell that to your broken leg." Sigil said, ending the argument.

* * *

When they finally reached the fire, Oscar almost threw himself off of Sigil. He then began pulling off the rest of the armor to check whether or not it had been damaged. He used some sort of box of tools to repair what had been damaged until everything was in pristine condition. He never took his helmet off.

"So what's your story?" Sigil asked. Oscar looked up from his ruined chest plate.

"What are you talking about?" Oscar inquired, confused.

"You obviously got in a fight with the demon guarding the main doors. And you released me. So what I'm asking is, why?" Sigil asked again, growing irritated.

"How did you know I fought the Asylum demon?" Oscar asked, surprised.

"Easy, there was a hole in the roof where you were, the demon was on the roof when I first found it. You have bludgeon marks on your armor, and the demon uses a hammer. So I'll ask again. Why did you release me?" Sigil inquired.

"There is an old saying in my family... Thou who art Undead, art chosen... In thine exodus from the Undead Asylum, maketh pilgrimage to the land of Ancient Lords... When thou ringeth the Bell of Awakening, the fate of the Undead thou shalt know. There you go. I figured that I should have a companion in case I should ever fail, and you weren't fully hollow." Oscar recited.

Sigil hummed in understanding, before standing up and walking over to the staircase. "Where are you going?" Oscar asked.

"I'm going to explore upstairs, then I'm going to go kill that demon," Sigil stated nonchalantly.

Oscar was silent for a moment before he burst out laughing. "What's so funny jackass?" Sigil asked, annoyed.

"Ha ha ha ha...It's just...heh...If an elite knight couldn't defeat it, what makes a hollow like you think you can slay that demon?" Oscar said, chuckling the whole time.

Sigil took a step forward. "I'll figure it out as I go along, something an elite knight obviously couldn't do." Sigil insulted Oscar.

"Take that back you bastard!" Oscar shot back.

"God forbid an elite knight of Astora, one who is basically royalty, lose at anything to a thief like myself!" Sigil said.

It was at this point that Oscar was overcome by anger. He unsheathed his sword in the blink of an eye, and charged forward, prepared to run Sigil through. He was, of course, surprised when his sword was knocked to the side by a small shield, followed by a quick stab to the side. He jumped backward, the fire immediately healing his wound.

"I'll rip you apart for that!" Oscar yelled.

He swung his sword overhead while taking a step forward, seeking to break Sigil's block. No success, as the blade bounced off the shield, nicking Sigil on the way down. He jumped back as Sigil slashed in reply. Taking another step forward, Oscar had his shield raised to safeguard his chest from the knife. He didn't expect it when the shield flew like a discus and hit him in the knee, hard. He dropped to one knee, as the joint had been damaged. He was then promptly stabbed in the neck, right in the jugular. His body dissolved into a cloud of souls and was absorbed by Sigil.

When he reformed by the bonfire, he was greeted by uproarious laughter. He had been turned hollow. "That was an excellent battle Sir Jerky! How does it feel being hollow, leather-skin?" Sigil taunted.

"Go to hell" Oscar growled. This only caused Sigil to laugh even more, to the point where he fell on the ground, gasping for air. Oscar took advantage of this and stabbed him in the neck.

When Sigil reformed, it was Oscar's turn to laugh. "What was that you were saying about knights not being able to 'Figure it out as they go along'? Coming from the person who just laid down in front of their opponent!" Oscar mocked.

Sigil replied with a slash of his knife.

* * *

They fought like this for a few hours. At first, Oscar won most of the matches, but soon Sigil was beating him nearly every time. When they paused to rest, Oscar asked the question that had been plaguing his mind.

"Tell me Sigil, how did you become so experienced?" Oscar asked.

"I just have a good eye, strength, and a bit of dexterity. " Sigil calmly answered as he sat down by the fire.

"That's a load of lies and we both know it," Oscar said.

"Eh, you got me. I spent all four years of my imprisonment practicing techniques I learned in a book regarding weapon styles," Sigil admitted.

"One you read before being imprisoned?" Oscar asked. Sigil nodded. "How did you have all that memorized?" Oscar asked.

"My father always said I had a sharp mind, and I agree. I just can't learn magic, no matter how damn hard I tried. I can sense it with perfect clarity, I just can't cast for shit." Sigil explained.

"I never liked magic, too complicated. But that reminds me, how did you start beating me like that?" Oscar asked.

"It was a matter of learning your form," Sigil answered. Oscar gave a quizzical look. "For example, when I struck you in the leg with my shield, I knew it was your favored leg. You always step out with it when you thrust or try to use an overhead strike. You were tucked behind your shield, meaning you were going to probably try a thrusting strike," Sigil explained.

"You learned all that after a single round?" Oscar asked, astounded.

"Not really, it was most of what I learned after studying about knights and their fighting style in that book I told you about. The rest of it, about which leg you favored and several other things were true." Sigil admitted.

They took a moment to prepare; Oscar donned his armor, and Sigil paced around, forming a mental plan. "Before we head up there, I need to give you something," Oscar said. He pulled out a green bottle filled with a glowing golden liquid. "Estus, an undead favorite. It's capable of healing you just like a bonfire, and refills when you sit next to one." Oscar explained.

Sigil inspected it for a moment before putting it in one of his pockets.

"And these," Oscar said as he handed Sigil two keys, one small and one large.

"These are for?" Sigil asked.

"The small key is for the top floor, and the large one is for the doors leading out of this cursed place," Oscar answered. Sigil nodded and stowed them away. They walked back up the two sets of stairs but stopped when they met the hollow who had pushed the iron ball. It sprinted forward, wielding a broken short sword in a two-handed grip. Swinging the blade down, it attempted to cleave Oscar in half, who had walked up the stairs first. There was a loud clang as the blade was knocked to the side by Oscar's shield.

As Oscar stepped to the side, Sigil dashed forward and stabbed the hollow in the armpit, through the heart, and out the neck. He kicked the corpse off and nodded to Oscar in approval.

"Nice one." Sigil said.

"You too," Oscar replied.

Sigil unlocked the door that the hollow had been guarding, and took his first breath of fresh air in over four years. That was, before a pair of blades slashed at him. He rolled back as the two hollows stumbled forward. Oscar quickly dashed forward and slashed horizontally. One of the hollows was caught in the neck, which caused its neck to spray blood. It gurgled as it fell backward, choking on its blood.

The other hollow was distracted by the surge of souls, so Sigil took advantage of this. Sprinting forward, he tackled the hollow to the ground, before stabbing it three times in the chest. He rolled to the side as an arrow whizzed overhead. Another hollow was standing to his left, where the other two had come from. It was standing in front of a small set of stairs which lead to another fog walls. Behind the hollow was a doorway.

As Sigil got up, an arrow whizzed toward him and embedded itself in his shoulder. Gritting his teeth, he charged forward. The hollow turned around and tried to run. Tried. It was stopped by a flying knife to the back.

Sigil grabbed the knife and yanked the arrow out of his shoulder. Blood started pouring out, as the arrow had been barbed.

"Take a swig of the Estus," Oscar recommended.

Following the advice, Sigil took a tentative sip. It was sweet. Sweeter than honey, but not in a sickening manner. There were hissing and popping. Sigil watched as the wound on his shoulder sealed itself, leaving only a faint white scar as evidence.

"Excellent," Sigil spoke to himself.

"I bet the Demon is behind that fog door. We should check for anything in that side room." Oscar recommended.

"Agreed." Sigil replied.

The quietly walked into the room and were greeted with a hollow swordsman. It was armed with iron armor and wielded a longsword and shield. Behind it lay an iron door.

"I'll take this one." Sigil said. Oscar nodded and stepped back. The swordsman immediately dashed forward and attempted to thrust its sword into Sigil's gut.

"Pathetic." He growled in disgust. The word was followed by the clang of the strike being parried. "Dead." Sigil said as he followed through by stabbing the hollow up through the jaw and into its brain. The corpse slumped down, dropping its longsword to the ground with a loud clatter.

Sigil picked it up and inspected it, searching for nicks or fracture lines in the blade. He found none and put on the sheath. He gave a few experimental swings, changing his stance to account in the shift in weight accordingly.

"It's disrespectful to steal from the dead." Oscar reprimanded Sigil.

"There are the quick and the dead. As you can see, I belong to the first party. Besides, when he attacked me, his life and that which he owns were made forfeit." Sigil defended.

"I should have expected as much from a thief," Oscar muttered.

"Stuck up pig." Sigil whispered under his breath.

* * *

They walked back to the fog wall, ready to enter.

"Wait, we should form some sort of plan." Sigil said.

"Weren't you the advocating figuring it out as we go along?" Oscar mocked.

"Yes. but I remember there was a balcony behind the beast." Sigil reminded. "Maybe we could drop down on it?"

"Excellent idea, I'll go first, and when it's distracted by me, you'll jump down and finish it off." Oscar agreed.

"See you on the other side." Sigil said.

Oscar charged through the wall. A few seconds later, there was the sound of bone and flesh meeting metal and an angry roar. Sigil took a deep breath, before walking through the wall.

Beneath him, he saw the huge demon trying to smash Oscar like a bug. It had a massive wound in its skull. Oscar was rolling and slashing, but he was too slow. Any moment he could be smashed. Sigil jumped forward and brought his blade down.

The sharp blade pierced the already damaged skull easily. The beast began bucking and swinging its hammer wildly, trying to dislodge the thief.

"NO YOU DON'T!" Sigil shouted. He tightened his grip on his sword and pulled out his knife. He began stabbing and slashing with all his might, fueled by adrenaline and the taste of freedom. The beast screamed in agony before it finally managed to throw him off.

Sigil was smashed into a nearby column, his spine loudly cracking. But it was too late, the monster collapsed to its knees, glowing. It then exploded into pure souls with one final roar. The massive surge of souls nearly choked Sigil, but he withstood it. Not long afterword Oscar lumbered over, panting. He had a few wounds of his own.

"Can't move my body." "Sigil groaned.

"Your spine is at about a 60-degree angle in the wrong direction. That might be the reason why." Oscar explained.

Oscar reached down and pulled out the Estus. "Open your mouth." He ordered.

She Sigil did so, Oscar poured Estus down his throat, like a mother feeding a sick child. "Gah, fucking hell." Sigil cursed as the ability to feel returned, and so did the sensation of having a few bones jutting into his organs. The pain stopped in a few moments.

"Thank you mother dearest." Sigil joked.

Oscar smacked him over the head with an armored gauntlet. He opened his helmet slightly and took a sip himself, evidenced by the hissing and steam coming off of him. Oscar pulled him up and gestured towards the massive doors the demon had been guarding.

"Would you like the honor?" Oscar asked.

"I would indeed." Sigil said. Sigil inserted the huge key, a massive clunk signified the door had been unlocked. He pushed the huge doors and was greeted by a freezing cold breeze and flecks of snow. He savored it for a few moments, before turning to Oscar.

"Oscar." Sigil said.

"Hmm?" Oscar hummed.

"Where do we go from here, to get out of this damned place?" Sigil asked.

"Oh, over there," Oscar replied as he pointed to the edge of a cliff. Sigil stuck his hand in front of Oscar's visor.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Sigil asked.

"Three, and why are you asking me this?" Oscar replied, slightly annoyed.

"I was checking if you were blind. Because you just told me that we need to jump off of a cliff." Sigil answered.

"Don't worry about the drop, we'll be picked up by something before we even reach the edge," Oscar assured him. Sigil gave a questioning look.

"Let's just check around to see if there's anything of interest." Sigil said, still questioning Oscar's sanity.

After checking for a few minutes, all that was found was a small mass of souls, and an irritating crow. As they approached the cliff, Sigil paused.

"What is it?" Oscar asked, somewhat impatient.

"I need to do something, I'll be back in a few minutes." Sigil answered.

"Alright, but if you take to long, I might leave you behind." Oscar joked. Sigil had already sprinted away.

He traversed the huge pair of double doors, slid down the ladder behind the bonfire, and then strolled through the hallway that had been all he had ever known for four years. A few hollow stared at him quizzically, as if asking "Why are you still here?" He ignored them until he reached George.

George seemed to have calmed down and stared blankly at Sigil. Sigil laid a hand on his shoulder. "Goodbye old friend, I'll come back to you when I can." Sigil said.

It may have been a trick of the mind, but he swore that George had nodded.

His final stop was his cell. He looked around at the small room, with a nostalgic smile. It hadn't been too bad. He had the hollows to keep him company now. Maybe he could even retrain them. He wasn't locked in anymore. Maybe he could stay here?

"To hell with that." Sigil snorted to himself.

And with that, he pulled out his sword hilt and stuck it in between the bricks. It would be a reminder to all that Sigil had been here, and he had conquered.

What he didn't expect was a brick to pop out and land on his foot.

After hopping about and cursing in a way that would make a sailor blush, he inspected the small gap. Inside was a small doll. A strange-looking one, almost peculiar. On the back, a name was stitched. _Priscilla_. He looked it over and almost stuck it back in the hole. Almost.

He felt a strange sensation emanating from the doll. He reached out with his mind, trying to sense if there was any magic within the doll. He was shocked when he found a massive pool of magical power resonating within the simple doll. He decided to take the doll with him.

He sprinted on the way back, eager to be rid of this place. When he reached Oscar, he was still clutching the doll.

"Couldn't forget your little dolly could you?" Oscar teased.

"Piss off. Also, have you ever seen a doll like this?" Sigil asked, annoyed.

Oscar inspected the doll for a few moments.

"Not really no," Oscar answered.

"What about the name?" Sigil questioned.

"Never heard of anyone going by that," Oscar replied. "We should leave now before night falls." He continued while staring off towards the setting sun.

"Agreed." Sigil answered.

They stepped onto the edge of the cliff, where a massive crow flew up in front of them. They were grabbed by the bird, one in each talon. It then flew away.

* * *

Sigil was at first panicked as they flew thousands of feet above the earth, but he soon enjoyed it.

"What will we expect when we get there?" He shouted to Oscar.

"We will land at the Firelink Shrine, which we will use as our resting place for now!" Oscar yelled back.

They rose over a mountain, and Sigil gasped in surprise. Before them lay the entirety of Lordran, in all its splendor. They eventually began descending, until they reached a small set of ruins. The crow tossed them down with nary a care. It then roosted and began preening.

"Looks like we're here," Oscar said as Sigil surveyed the area.

There was a bonfire surrounded by stone steps and a few benches. To the side was a suspicious-looking man in chainmail. After he lit the bonfire, Sigil sat down and relaxed.

He pulled the doll out again. He tried to discover anything about the magic within, to no avail.

"I will find your secrets." Sigil said as he set it back in one of his pockets. He then laid down on the soft grass and drifted into a well-deserved sleep.

* * *

**If you enjoyed, please review! Help me by pointing out plotholes and typos, and I'll have them fixed within 24 hours (usually).**

**Final A.N.: This is. the typical chapter length: Expect 5k, sometimes 5k+**

**Thank you!**

* * *

**Edit: fixed a few typos.**


	3. Chapter 3: Rest and Skeletons

**Hello everyone, and thank you for being patient. I have been sick for the past couple of days, so this chapter is shorter than it should be. Don't worry, I'll get back on track soon. Now for reviews!**

**Blackplant- I'm glad you're enjoying this!**

**ThatOneRandomDude- It's good to see you're enjoying this! I was also a little curious as to how Oscar knew so much. So I inserted a little plot point into the story. Oscar and Sigil have very different viewpoints, but I think you're correct. Also being undead lets them take out some "unhealthy" anger out on one another. I would think that they would have put Priscilla's doll somewhere in Anor Londo, but who knows.**

**This is going to be a break chapter, something which I'll do every three to four chapters depending on how the plot goes.**

* * *

When he first awoke, Sigil was panicked that he wasn't in a dark, dingy cell. He calmed down as the previous day's memories flooded into his mind. He wondered what he would do, now that he was free. Until he heard the crunching of grass nearby.

"Are you awake?" Oscar asked, his helmet gone. He appeared to be a few years older than Sigil, with charcoal black hair.

"No, I'm completely unconscious." Sigil groaned as he got off the grass.

"Hilarious. I've been exploring Firelink Shrine while you were taking your beauty sleep." The elite knight said.

"Anything of interest?" Sigil spoke as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

"A couple of things, I'll tell you as we walk," Oscar stated.

"Wait, how are you not hollow? I must have killed you at least 18 times." Sigil asked.

"It wasn't any more than 16! I just used some of the humanity we got off of the demon back at the Asylum." Oscar explained while he passed over a small, pitch-black sprite.

Grabbing the humanity, Sigil studied it for a few moments. That is until it blinked at him. He nearly jumped backward.

"Did it just blink?!" Sigil asked, panicked.

"I think you just spent too much time in the Asylum, look again," Oscar answered with an eyebrow raised.

Sigil stared at the sprite once more, satisfied when it made no motions. He crushed it in his fist and felt a strange sensation. One of completeness and fullness. However, he was still hollow.

"I still look like red leather." Sigil observed.

Oscar sighed and explained, "You have to offer the humanity in your soul to the bonfire to reverse the hollowing now."

Sigil knelt next to the bonfire. He had never done this before but somehow he knew how to. The humanity reformed in his hand, before disappearing into the flames. The thief's hand was now a slightly tan color and healthy-looking. he looked to Oscar, who nodded in approval.

"Now may I show you some of the things I wanted to tell you about?" Oscar asked while tapping his foot.

Sigil nodded and followed Oscar down a set of stairs. When they reached the bottom, there was an iron cage embedded in the rock. Inside lay a pile of rags.

"While I usually find piles of dirty clothes fascinating, I'm a little off today." Sigil said, bored.

It was then that the rags shifted, revealing a young woman with blond hair amongst them. She looked towards the pair of men, before cowering back.

"Is that a girl? What the hell is she doing in there?" Sigil asked while squatting down, trying to get a better look at the girl.

"I asked the fellow above, the one in chainmail armor. He said she was the firekeeper for the bonfire. Apparently, she had her tongue cut and her legs broken." Oscar explained while Sigil adopted a horrified expression.

"Why would anyone do that?" Sigil asked, before looking back to the girl, a pang of sympathy resonating in his soul.

"To prevent her from abandoning her duty or performing some form of heresy. They are chosen at random from what I've heard." Oscar answered.

Sigil pulled out his Estus flask and passed it through the bars to the girl. She looked at him, curious but cautious. Sigil nodded to her, moving the flask a little bit closer. She grabbed the flask and scooted back, like a stray dog grabbing a piece of food.

"I was like you once," Sigil spoke, softly and quietly. She glanced at him, an inquisitive look on her face.

"I was locked away, no one to talk to, nowhere to go, forced to watch everyone else walk freely. Take a sip of that, it's as sweet as honey and will help your tongue." Sigil urged her.

She nodded and took a sip. She yelped in surprise and then again at the fact that she could yelp. She got onto her legs shakily. She looked at Sigil with deep gratitude. He shook his head.

"Don't thank me, thank him." Sigil said with a grin as he pulled Oscar over. "He's the one who rescued me and gave me that flask." The thief explained. The girl nodded and turned to Oscar.

"Th-thank you v-very much s-sir knight." She spoke, her speaking skills rusty from disuse.

"It was no pr-problem dear lady." Oscar stuttered, clearly embarrassed. Sigil had to hold back the urge to laugh.

"What is your name, dear lady?" Sigil asked.

"It i-is Ana-Anastacia of Astora," Anastacia spoke quietly and shyly.

"Well Anastacia, we're going to help you out of these bars!" Sigil said as he hopped up to his feet.

"Wait, how?" Oscar asked, confused.

"How do you think? We're gonna yank on these rusty bars until they come out!" Sigil explained.

"This isn't going to work." Oscar sighed.

"Oh, ye of little faith." Sigil said as he grabbed one side of the bars while Oscar grabbed the other. They grunted as they tried to pull the seemingly weak bars from the stone, but to no avail.

"Ah hell, back away both of you." Sigil grumbled. The two others did so as Sigil walked a few feet back. He then charged the bars and leaped into a flying kick. It didn't do anything except bruise his foot. He hopped away cursing while Oscar laughed uproariously and Anastacia giggled behind her hand quietly.

"Alright, that's it! Oscar, give me your boots!" Sigil yelled.

"My boots?" Oscar asked incredulously.

"You have metal boots. I have leather ones. If I try that again with metal, I could break through." Sigil explained. Oscar sighed and handed the thief his boots.

Sigil charged forward and tried the same maneuver. He hit the metal and then bounced off. He was then sent rolling backward, off the edge of a cliff.

"Shit! Fuck! DAMN IT!" Sigil cursed as he rolled off the cliff, followed by the sound of souls being released into the air.

Oscar fell over laughing while Anastacia looked on in horror. That is until Sigil walked back down the stairs grumbling under his breath.

"How was your trip?" Oscar chuckled. He received a boot to the face as a reply. After he spat out a dislodged tooth, he tackled Sigil. They grunted and cursed at, kicked and punched, bit and headbutted each other until they both fell off the cliff. Twice.

* * *

It was after only an hour of brawling that they finally did stop. Sigil walked back down to Anastacia to discuss a few things.

"First, don't worry about us abandoning you, as we'll be using this place as our resting point. Second, whenever we do come back, we will try and break you out of these bars." Sigil declared. The firekeeper merely nodded. The thief walked back up the stairs to a waiting Oscar.

"I hate you, so much," Oscar growled.

"For what? Introducing you to a beautiful girl who's about your age?" Sigil laughed as Oscar blushed.

"She's even Astoran, so you have something to talk about during your courting!" Sigil added, guffawing as Oscar turned as red as a tomato. When he finished wiping away the tears, Sigil laid his hand on Oscar's shoulder.

"It's been great, hopefully, we'll see each other again." Sigil said as he turned to walk away.

"Wait! What do you mean 'see each other again'? We have yet to ring the Bell of Awakening!" Oscar cried out, confused.

"Now hold on, I'm thankful for being freed from that prison, but I never said anything about going on some fantastical quest. By the way, how do you even know so much about this Bell of Awakening and the 'Chosen Undead'?" Sigil replied.

"I...I'm not the first Elite Knight to venture out to Lordran to try and ring the bell." Oscar nervously explained.

Sigil narrowed his eyes and asked, "How many?"

"Over the last ten years? Around five dozen." Oscar admitted.

"Five fucking dozen?! Why the hell did you even accept this quest?" Sigil shouted, outraged.

"I thought I would be different, that I would be the first one to successfully ring the bell," Oscar revealed.

"You thought there was only one bell? What foolish knights." A new voice spoke behind the arguing men. They turned to see a man in chainmail sitting on a stone bench a few yards from the bonfire.

"What do you mean?" Oscar asked.

"You see, there are two Bells of Awakening: One in Undead Parish at the top of Undead Burg, the other in what is now Blighttown." The man explained, followed by a low chuckle.

"That's just great! Not only do we have to go to a town that's probably full of hollows, but we also have to go to the cesspool of the world! Count me out!" Sigil yelled as he began walking away.

"Sigil wait. I know this seems insane, but this is for the good of all of mankind. Just please trust-" Oscar began but was cut off by Sigil.

"The good of mankind? The good of mankind?! Mankind treated me like dirt and spat on me, and that was before I was tossed into a cell for being one more unlucky son of a bitch! At least you were an Elite knight, so they couldn't just leave you to rot!" Sigil shot back, his words laced with venom.

"And what do you have to go to? If we manage to complete this quest, we'll become heroes! Maybe even legends!" Oscar answered. Sigil quietly contemplated the thought. He took a deep breath and revealed his decision.

"I'll do it, but promise me something." Sigil said.

"Anything," Oscar promised.

"I'll get the next cute girl," Sigil spoke before he burst into laughter at Oscar's flabbergasted face.

"I should have guessed you were going to say that." Oscar sighed. "Now that that's settled, I'll tell you about what else is lying around here," Oscar said as he and Sigil walked into the ruins behind the fire.

* * *

They spent the rest of the day searching the surrounding area. They found a multitude of items, ranging from humanities to a mace. Sigil even managed to find a secret cove by climbing up some vines. Inside the cove were several chests. They possessed a talisman, several of what were later revealed to be cracked red eye orbs and homeward bones. He found several strange talismans with a glowing sphere inside of them.

Sigil walked to the edge of the cove and saw a graveyard before him. He looked for a few moments before he spotted something. A massive greatsword at the far end of the graveyard. The thief decided to live up to his name and jumped down onto the dirt below.

He was surprised when a pile of bones next to him began assembling itself. Skeletons. He sprinted towards the giant blade, ignoring the crackling and hissing of the angered dead. He barely noticed an eight-foot-long blade swung towards his head. He ducked under just in time, as the skeleton behind him was obliterated.

He looked at the wielder for just a moment before sprinting even faster. It was a twelve-foot tall skeleton, with ribs as thick as Sigil's arms. He leaped forward and grabbed the blade, before rolling off the edge of a nearby cliff.

* * *

When he reformed by the fire, he was still clutching the massive sword. He grinned and shouted in victory. Oscar, who had been taking a nap jumped up and pointed his sword at the thief, even though it was still in its sheath.

"What the hell is that Sigil?" Oscar asked as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"I managed to nick this greatsword from the nearby graveyard." Sigil answered, ignoring Oscar's judgmental stare.

How do you plan on me using that? I use a sword and shield." Oscar asked.

"What are you talking about? I'm going to use this." Sigil answered as he hefted the sword onto his shoulder.

"You?! You're a thief, aren't you supposed to be light on your feet and dexterous?" Oscar asked, flabbergasted.

"Have you ever heard the phrase 'float like a butterfly, sting like a bee'? I'm going to do that, except I'm going to bite like a dragon!" Sigil explained.

"I think you're just going to get smashed by the first group of enemies we encounter. You're going to take an hour to just get the blade into position to swing!" Oscar retorted.

"Then let's fight! Let's see if I can beat you with this sword!" Sigil challenged.

"I'm going to thrash you. You do know that right?" Oscar shook his head as he spoke.

"Then come at me!" Sigil replied as he raised the blade in both hands.

Oscar readied his shield and slowly approached the thief. Sigil rested the blade on his shoulder once more and raised his shield. Dashing forward, Oscar slashed at the shield diagonally, seeking to break Sigil's guard. The thief replied by grabbing the sword in both hands and bringing it down with all his might.

The blade cracked the stone beneath where Oscar had been, as the knight has backstepped a moment before he could be flattened. Raising his shield just in time, Sigil parried Oscar's sword. While the knight's sword was knocked out of the way, Sigil tightened the grip on his blade. He grinned and spoke a single word.

"Dead."

In the blink of an eye, Sigil swung the massive greatsword with all his might. He spun the blade horizontally around him until it came into contact with his opponent. There was a mighty CLANG as it cleaved Oscar in two, turning the hapless knight into souls. When he reformed, he wore a shocked expression.

"How the hell are you strong enough to wield that one-handed?!" Oscar exclaimed.

"I spent four years performing pure strength training for hours each day. I think anyone would be able to wield this blade if they did that." Sigil revealed.

"Training? I would think that you would have used souls to do so!" Oscar stated.

"You can use souls for improving your strength?" Sigil inquired as he sat down, surprised.

"Of course you can! You can improve your skills in much the same way that you restore your humanity. I personally prefer the old-fashioned way, but it's up to you." Oscar responded.

"That's great to know. Also, can you help me up?" Sigil requested as he held his left hand out to Oscar.

"Why?" The knight inquired while he helped Sigil up.

"Because I just dislocated my shoulder and snapped my wrist trying to swing that sword." Sigil answered before screaming in pain.

* * *

After healing, Sigil knelt down by the fire. He focused on the skill he wanted to be improved. Visualizing the souls leaving his body, Sigil felt his lungs seemingly increase in size and his muscles grow tougher. When he finally ran out of souls to use, he stood up and sprinted around the shrine.

He rolled several times while doing this and was pleased to find that he could do this much faster than before, even with the greatsword in hand.

"When you're finished running around like a child, there's a couple of locations we can go to," Oscar spoke, annoyed.

"Kill-joy." Sigil sighed.

"We can go down another level lower than where the firekeeper is to reach the ruins of New Londo. The catacombs next to the graveyard are also an option. Finally, there's the aqueduct leading to Undead Burg." Oscar explained.

"And you learned this all how?" Sigil inquired.

"From Cadmar, the Crestfallen warrior in chainmail."

"You mean the one who's so trustworthy, that he would wait a whole five seconds before stabbing you in the back and tossing your corpse off a cliff? Wonderful." Sigil sighed, exasperated.

"I heard that!" The aforementioned warrior shouted.

"Then don't act like a creepy bastard!" Sigil yelled back.

"Are you finished yet?" Oscar asked.

"Yes, but I'm going to go explore those ruins down below by myself." Sigil answered as he walked down the stairs.

"Wait, why?!" Oscar shouted.

"I need some time alone and killing things gets the aggression out!" Sigil shouted back.

Oscar grumbled as the thief walked down into a small room. Inside was a circular stone plate suspended by chains with a button in the center. When he stepped on it, the platform began rapidly descending.

When he reached the bottom, he was greeted by the view of an entire city that had fallen apart. In front of him sat several hollows staring at the crumbling city. Sigil sat down next to the lost souls and gawked at the strangely beautiful ruins.

One of the hollows looked at him for a moment. He nodded at it, showing that he would cause no trouble. It grunted and returned to looking. Sigil quickly grew bored and walked down a pathway to the side.

After finding a somewhat flat and open area, Sigil began training. He gave the huge sword a practice swing but nearly fell over in the process.

"You're weak." A voice spoke in his mind.

"Shut up." Sigil growled.

"Pathetic. You should have died back in that cell." The voice taunted.

Sigil roared as he spun the blade around into an overhead swing. The brick underneath cracked beneath the force. He took a sip of estus after he felt a tendon tear. He was learning, but not fast enough. He practiced simple swings, gritting his teeth as his muscles screamed in protest.

He paused to stare at his hands. He had forgone gloves to toughen them. His hands were torn and covered in blood. He gripped them and watched as a few drops splattered on the floor below.

"Giving up so soon? Weak, as I thought." The voice jeered. Sigil growled in response.

After another three hours of training and a bottle of estus, Sigil decided to relax. He ran to the water's edge and stuck his hand in it. It was cool, but pleasantly so.

He prepared to jump in but remembered stories of adventurers drowning because of their heavy armor and weapons. Tossing away his sword and shield, the thief dived into the water.

* * *

He swam about for an hour, enjoying the sensation of the blood and grime being washed off. Climbing out, he grabbed his equipment and walked into a part of the ruins.

He paused when he heard a soft weeping. Suddenly, a translucent blade lashed out at him, ignored his shield, and left a gash across his chest. Hissing in pain, Sigil rolled back and tried to look for the attacker. A spirit floated before him. It was draped in a ghostly white cloak and was naught but the upper half of a skeletal torso. The exception was its skull, which was covered in sunken, rotting flesh.

"Come on you rotting bastard!" Sigil shouted. The thief charged forward and swung down his sword with all his might. The blade merely passed through the ghost without doing any damage. The phantom stared at him, appearing to raise a rotten eyebrow. It then swiftly decapitated the hapless thief.

When he reformed by the fire, Sigil was in a terrible mood. He heard giggling beneath him and leaned over the rocks to see what was the source. He frowned when he spotted Oscar and Anastacia talking. Apparently, Oscar had said something funny.

"Just kiss already!" Sigil shouted as he walked away. He chuckled as he heard a startled yelp and the sounds of Oscar cursing. Sigil exchanged his greatsword for his longsword. The thief left the massive blade by the fire.

"Don't touch it." He warned the crestfallen warrior.

Cadmar grunted in response.

He walked up winding stairs leading to the aqueduct. He drew his longsword and prepared to fight the hollows before him. The creature charged him, preparing an overhead blow.

Sigil didn't give him the chance. Swing the blade diagonally, Sigil slice the hollow's sword arm and head clean off. The corpse fell to its knees as a fountain of blood erupted from it. The thief had already swapped targets.

Sigil charged up another set of stairs as a hollow threw firebombs down upon him. Gripping the sword with both hands, sigil sprinted and impaled the hollow upon it. The thief spat out the blood that had gotten in his mouth. He kicked it off his blade and turned to its companion. The hollow raised a battle-ax to block any attacks.

The thief grinned a feral grin. He bashed the hollow with his shield and, while the hapless creature was knocked off balance, cut its throat out.

Another hollow charged down the stairs leading to the aqueduct. It had its legs cut out from beneath it and its skull crushed under Sigil's boot.

"WEAK! ALL OF YOU ARE WEAK!" Sigil shouted.

A final hollow, one carrying a longsword and metal shield walked up behind him. It swung its blade and nicked him in the back. Sigil parried another strike and slashed at the hollow. Seeking to press his advantage, Sigil kicked its leg out, leaving it on its knees before the thief.

"Pathetic." Sigil spoke as he took the hollow's head off with one clean stroke.

"Sigil! Wait for me!" Oscar shouted from the first set of stairs.

"Have you finished professing your undying love for the firekeeper?" Sigil jeered.

"I'm not even going to grace that with a reply. Heaven's sake man, did you really have to do all this? Seems to be a little overkill." Oscar spoke as pointed at the torn corpses.

"Had to get to the aggression out." Sigil replied with a shrug.

"Alright, let's just head up to undead burg before you crack any more jokes."

They continued onto the stairs of the aqueduct, ready for anything. Until Sigil spoke.

"So is she a good kisser?"

"I HATE YOU SO MUCH!" Oscar shouted.

* * *

**Thank you for reading! Please review so I can see what needs to be changed.**

* * *

**Edit: More typo fixing!**


	4. Chapter 4: A Trip Into Town

**So...Hey. Now, before you get the pitchforks and torches- I SAID BEFORE. So I've been kinda busy, getting back into school, a hiking trip that was about 2 weeks long, family issues, illness (non-serious kind), illness (serious kind), and writer's block. All excellent excuses I assure you. But I'm back baby!.**

**Without further ado, let's begin with the comments about Chapter 3 and the April fools joke I did...in April...Jesus I slacked on this one.**

**Chap 3:**

**Unbothered: I do enjoy reading about peculiar or strange protagonists. Writing about one is difficult yet satisfying.**

**Jaciro: Tbh Solaire could probably get any character he wanted. Cause he's _BEST BOY_.**

**Blackplant: *sweats* Yeah, fast updates...At least my grammar's good...mostly.**

**JJ: Get back to work.**

**April fools.**

**Infernus: Thanks for the encouragement!**

**Unbothered: Good to see my writing's unclear even in my April fools jokes...*sigh*.**

**Jaciro: Yes, yes you have.**

**Guest: Get yourself an account!**

**JJ: WHAT ARE YOU DOING GET BACK TO WORK!**

* * *

"You've seen demons and monsters, yet a giant rat surprises you? Really!?" The thief asked incredulously

"It was just strange!" The knight attempted to defend himself. Sigil shook his head and laughed.

Sigil and Oscar marched out of the Aqueduct, now coated in both blood and sewage. As soon as they walked up the stairs leading out of the slime, a blade came rushing toward the knight. Sigil parried the blow and ran his sword through the hollow's chest. Ripping the blade out, Sigil charged a second hollow and buried his sword into the hapless creature's collarbone.

"Behind you!" Oscar shouted as he bashed a hollow with his shield. Sigil nodded his thanks and continued. The last two hollows were hacked to pieces before they even realized what had happened. After walking up a narrow staircase, the duo was presented with a narrow bridge leading to the rest of Undead Burg. A single hollow stood in their way.

Until a massive dragon-like beast landed on the bridge, crushing the hollow to a mere pulp. The beast roared before taking off once more.

"What the hell was that! Was that a dragon?" Sigil shouted.

"Nonsense, it must have been a drake. They are smaller than dragons but still ferocious." Oscar replied. Sigil nodded and they continued on their way.

The entire city was filled with the smell of death and decay. Vast stone structures and houses which had held thousands of people now were filled with hollows. Stone walls thought to be impenetrable were now cracked and collapsed as Mother Nature reclaimed what had been stolen from her. As Sigil admired the view, a crossbow bolt suddenly embedded itself in his shoulder.

"Shit!" The thief cursed as he jumped back. "There's a hollow with a crossbow on top of that small tower." Sigil said as he pointed out the small battlement.

"Stay behind me while I charge him. Keep any others off of my back." Oscar ordered. While Oscar sprinted towards the tower, Sigil stabbed a hollow waiting in ambush. Hearing the shattering of boxes, the thief turned to face a pair of hollow spearmen. One tried to stab him with its spear but the blow was easily parried. A moment later, the same hollow was impaled on Sigil's blade. A quick slash finished the other.

Turning to see if Oscar was finished, Sigil spotted the crossbowman being thrown off the edge of the tower and onto the ground, hundreds of feet below.

"There's a bonfire over here if you need to rest!" Oscar shouted. Sigil nodded and climbed up the stairs, before walking into a side room. Oscar was already seated with his helmet off. Sigil yanked the bolt out of his shoulder as he sat down, the fire healing and sealing the wound.

The thief inspected the room. It had been cleared out in a hurry, as evidenced by knocked over tables and furniture. A stone staircase led higher up but was broken about halfway. A little bit away from it was an extendable ladder. Sigil stood up and left his weapons by the fire.

"What are you doing now?" Oscar inquired, annoyed that his rest had been interrupted.

"Finding," Sigil Sprinted up the stairs and leaped onto the ladder, grabbing it with one hand and hanging."A shortcut." He finished as he climbed up to the top and kicked it. The rusty clasps shattered and the ladder slid down, hitting the ground with a loud _CLANG_. Sigil shimmied back down to an impressed Oscar. The thief grabbed his things and set out for the doorway through which they came.

"Where are you going? You just opened up a shortcut." Oscar asked, perplexed.

"You saw that drake. If we go up that ladder will probably meet it sooner rather than later." Sigil replied.

"And if we go along that route to the Parish, we'll most likely meet it anyway. What's your point?" Oscar interrogated.

"If we go the long way, we'll be able to obtain better gear. Remember the graveyard?" Sigil explained.

"Oh, more robbing the dead! Wonderful!" The knight vociferated.

"I'd rather rob the dead for better gear than die because of poor equipment! This sword is about to shatter and I can't wield the other effectively." The thief argued back.

"Fine. We'll do it your way. However, I won't exchange my magic sword or shield for lesser weapons." Oscar finally submitted.

"So be it." Sigil spoke before walking out.

As they walked out, however, another bolt shot past. Sigil recovered from the surprise first and impaled the crossbowman.

"I thought you killed him!" Sigil said as he kicked the corpse off.

"I did!" Oscar replied, just as surprised.

"Wait, I need to test something. Come back to the bonfire." Sigil ordered.

They sat down next to the fading flames, while a strange, multicolored fog surrounded them. They watched as the corpse stood back up and took up its guardpost once more.

"By the gods..." Oscar muttered.

"This could work out in our favor. They don't always seem to drop useful equipment but look. That crossbow is almost brand new, while the old one was a glorified pile of splinters." Sigil observed. "Not to mention the souls."

And so they began to slay their enemies, repeatedly. They stabbed and slashed, smashed and crushed, parried and backstabbed. The sun was beginning to set when they stopped for the day.

Sigil had just finished off a pair of pikemen when he noticed a conspicuous pile of boxes. He pushed several away, revealing a staircase. He motioned for Oscar to follow as he descended the stone steps. The steps led to a barren room with two entrances but nothing else. While Sigil searched for any hidden loot, he heard a sound.

Soft, hoarse breathing.

A flash of silver and the hollow who had tried to ambush him was run through.

"A trap? I wonder if any of these hollows are still sane..." Sigil murmured.

"Oi! Over here!" A raspy voice called.

On the other side of a stone arch lay a pile of old weapons and armor, with a hollow man in the middle. To his left laid a strange sword, easily within reach of the hollow.

"You seem to still have your wits, as well as some souls. A welcome customer then! I've got plenty of wares." The hollow spoke with a nasal voice.

The two adventurers looked through the piles of equipment until something piqued Sigil's interest: An ornate wooden box.

"Ah, I see you have quite the eye. That is a bottomless box, straight from Anor Londo." The merchant explained.

"Bottomless? This could barely hold a helmet." The thief scoffed. The hollow shook his head and took the box.

"Observe." The hollow grabbed a chest plate and began pushing it into the box. The box seemed to stretch slightly as the armor was pushed in until the chest plate disappeared completely. Sigil took the box once more and realized it didn't weigh an ounce more than it had before.

"Amazing! How much do you want for it?" Sigil inquired.

"A mere thousand souls. I'll even toss in a few of these throwing knives in." The merchant offered as he pulled the armor back out.

"I'll take it." Sigil replied. He tied a rope to the box and slung it over his shoulder. "Anything you want Oscar?"

"I think I'll pass. Thank you for the offer." Oscar said. They set off to continue on their quest.

"Come back again!" The merchant shouted.

Once they were out of earshot, the adventurers resumed their conversation.

"So he had a pretty nice looking sword." Sigil began.

"No," Oscar stated.

"What! I didn't even say I was going to do anything!" Sigil argued.

"I know what you were going to say, and the answer is no. We are not going to steal his sword." Oscar shot back.

"Spoilsport." Sigil sighed.

"Where to now?" Oscar asked.

"I need to run back to Firelink Shrine. With this box, I should be able to bring my other sword with me." Sigil explained.

"I'll head back with you," Oscar said.

"Need to chat with your sweetheart again?" Sigil poked.

"Go to hell," Oscar grumbled.

* * *

When they reached the shrine, Sigil sprinted over to the Cadmar, who was sharpening the greatsword.

"What are you doing?" Sigil asked with deadly seriousness.

Cadmar replied with a flat tone. "Taking care of this weapon. Something _you_ seemed to forget to do."

"Just give me my damn sword." Sigil growled.

The warrior sighed and handed the weapon to the thief, before resuming maintenance of his equipment.

Walking down to Anastacia's cage, sigil dug his feet into the ground.

"Get back!" Sigil shouted to the trapped firekeeper.

Gritting his teeth, Sigil swung the blade with all his might. A loud _CLANG_ echoed throughout the nearby canyon. The blade of the sword seemed to bounce off of the bars. Hollering in anger, Sigil spun with the momentum of the bounce and clashed with the bars once more. He repeated this process, again and again, his muscles screaming in agony. He eventually collapsed to his knees, panting as sweat dripped down his brow.

"Sigil! Are you alright?" Oscar shouted as he ran down to help the thief to his feet.

"I'm fine! I'm fine." The thief grunted as he stumbled back up to the bonfire.

He had felt something from the cage. Some form of magic, akin to that of the doll. They weren't connected, but they were similar. Sigil slumped down next to the fire and planned the route to the Parish. As soon as he finished, he ran back to the town, not bothering to wait for Oscar.

He slashed, crushed, and cleaved the hollows who stood before him. Not even pausing to breathe, Sigil ran on, slaying all who stood before him. He ran across a narrow bridge as fire rained down. He lowered his blade, using his momentum to impale a hollow on the sword. Spinning, he cleaved the other two in the small room in half.

He continued on his journey.

Walking up a staircase, Sigil grabbed a bomb as it whistled towards him. He hurled it back at the hollow who chucked it, the smell of burnt flesh filling the air. The other two charged the thief, only to be cut to pieces by the massive blade he wielded.

Sigil silently crept up a small tower, having spotted a crossbowman stationed there. He slit the hollow's throat and grabbed its weapon. He fired a bolt into the eye of a pikeman stationed below, another into the throat of a swordsman, and a third into the forehead of the last survivor.

He grabbed his zweihander as he sprinted down a staircase. He took a right down a tunnel, choosing to explore rather than go straight for the Parish. Sliding to a halt, Sigil tightened the grip on his sword as he stared down his opponent: A black knight.

The hulking warrior turned towards the thief. The only sound in the air was raspy breathing from the knight's seemingly empty helmet.

It drew its sword, raised its shield, and charged. Shouting a war cry, Sigil dashed forward in reply.

The knight swung horizontally while Sigil lept upwards. The thief stabbed the knight in the right shoulder with a dagger and used it as an anchor to land behind the elite warrior.

The knight spun around and glared at the embedded weapon. In one smooth motion, it yanked out the blade. Boiling vapor hissed out of the chink in the armor before it sealed itself. Sigil grinned a feral grin before charging once more.

The two blades clashed together. Sigil felt his knees begin to buckle as his muscles burned. Yelling in rage, Sigil kicked out the knight's leg as he spun clockwise and buried the heavy blade in his opponent's side.

The knight howled in agony as it smashed the thief with its shield. Sigil rolled back with the momentum, drawing another knife as he did so. He sprinted forward, leaping between the legs of the knight as it buried its blade into the ground behind the thief.

Sigil spun around as he rolled to his feet and buried the knife in knight's spine. The knight spun around; a faint pair of glowing eyes visible within the helmet as it reached for the knife.

Jumping onto his opponent, the thief shoved his thumbs through the holes in the helmet. Hissing as his thumbs scorched by the hot gas, sigil applied even more pressure. Grinning as he felt something give way, Sigil laughed as he heard the knight scream in pain before keeling over.

Pulling out his dagger from the asylum, Sigil stabbed the knight in the neck and yanked the handle to the side, ripping out the enemy's throat. Hot gas hissed out of the wound. As the knight faded into souls, a single word echoed throughout the tunnel.

"Dead."

The thief looked down to see something shimmering on the ground: a ring with a bluestone. Next to it lay a large chunk of greyish metal. Sigil slipped on the ring before tossing the metal into his box. He groaned, realizing he had been nicked by the knight's blade. Leaning against the tunnel wall, Sigil drunk a shot of Estus. He grunted as a large cut on his side stitched itself together.

Sigil stumbled back to the bonfire, exhausted. He spent all the souls he gained on strength. Hearing the sound of metal boots on stone, Sigil slowly reached for his sword. He relaxed when it was none other than Oscar who came through the doorway.

"Where have you been?" Oscar asked.

"Exploring." Sigil said with a shrug.

Oscar sighed before he glanced at Sigil's hand.

"Where did you get that." Oscar inquired suspiciously.

"Off a knight." Sigil replied curtly.

"That's a Blue Tearstone Ring. Those were only given to knights of Gwyn. Don't tell me you..." Oscar explained.

"I killed a black knight. What of it?" Sigil stated as he leaned against a wall.

Oscar narrowed his eyes but said nothing. Sigil hopped to his feet.

"We should get going. I plotted a path to the Parish." Sigil spoke as he walked out the doorway.

* * *

They soon reached the area where Sigil had stopped but chose to walk up a set of stairs to the left.

Oscar barely had enough time to leap back as a flaming barrel came rolling down the stairs and off the edge. The hollow who had kicked it was quickly slain. They two undead continued on their path.

They walked into a large battlement, several stories in height. Rather than continuing upward, Sigil decided to unlock a side door leading downstairs. After walking down several flights of stairs, the two were confronted with a new enemy.

A knight clad in seeming stone armor, wielding a massive club. It looked up at the two intruders and drew a massive shield, before charging up the stairs.

Sigil rolled off to the side as the knight brought down its club, turning the stone stairs into dust and rubble. Oscar leaped down to Sigil's left.

The knight leaped down, bringing its weapon down with it. The ground below was covered with cracks as the very floor seemed to shake.

Oscar slashed at the enemy while it tried to recover. It didn't even flinch at the blow, replying instead with a swing of its weapon.

Vainly trying to block, Oscar was sent flying back while Sigil sprinted forward.

The thief brought his sword down, knocking the knight off balance. Leaning and spinning clockwise, Sigil spun around and struck the knight again. After recovering its balance, the knight grabbed its club with both hands. In the blink of an eye, the tip of the weapon crushed Sigil's sternum, killing him instantly. Oscar soon met the same fate.

* * *

"Well, I guess we can forget about downstairs." Sigil stated as he rubbed his torso where it had been collapsed.

"That was one of Havel's knights. Why in the- why was it there?!" Oscar puzzled.

"Who knows. We just need to keep moving toward the Parish." Sigil said as he hefted the zweihander upon his shoulder.

They made their way through the burg until they reached the battlement. They climbed up several sets of flights of stairs till they reached a fog door.

On the other side lay a walkway on top of the external wall of the burg. To the right, about 150 yards away, lay another tower. To the left, a small battlement. They climbed up to the top of the battlement, finding and killing a pair of crossbowman.

They climbed down and began walking across the open stretch of wall.

"Something about this doesn't feel right," Oscar said under his breath. Sigil gave an affirmative grunt.

When they were about 50 yards from the tower, a roar echoed from the top of it. A massive demon, wielding a cross between an ax and a hammer leaped down, cracking the stone beneath it.

It had the skeletal tail and head of an ox, but the stature and shape of a man. Its body was covered in a thick shaggy hair, save for the areas were massive scars tore across it.

The two undead drew their swords. The creature growled. The two groups stared each other down, waiting for the other to make a move

The beast charged.

Sigil rolled to the side while Oscar leaped back. The ground had been standing was smashed by the demon's great ax.

Swinging his sword, Sigil slashed the side of the beast. It bellowed and swung its arm in return, knocking the thief back a dozen feet.

Oscar charged forward and buried his sword to the hilt in the demon's gut. It shot out its right leg and sent the elite knight flying back.

"COME ON YOU UGLY BASTARD!" Sigil shouted from behind.

The beast turned just in time to have one of its horns slashed off by the thief's blade. It howled in pain and rage while grabbing at the stump.

"Dead." The thief spoke under his breath.

Sigil lifted the greatsword and thrust it forward, catching the demon in the throat.

It grabbed the blade and yanked it free, throwing the hapless thief to the side.

The damage had already been done.

The dark brown fur was stained red with the demon's blood.

It let loose one more great roar as it collapsed, dissipating into pure souls.

Panting from exhaustion, Sigil slowly got up.

"Oscar! You alive?" Sigil yelled.

A groan came from a pile of rubble near the small tower.

* * *

After pulling Oscar from half a ton of rubble and collecting the humanity from the demon, The two continued on their way.

They walked down another set of stairs leading toward the parish. To their left was a bridge with several hollows, to the right lay a terrace.

Sigil began to run across the bridge but paused when he heard the beating of large wings. He jumped back to the covered side just in time to see all the hollows be charred to a crisp by dragon fire. The drake they had seen earlier perched itself on top of the gateway on the other side of the bridge, daring the two undead to cross.

"Now what." Sigil grumbled.

"Let's go check over on the terrace." Oscar offered.

The terrace had two levels and was bathed in golden sunlight. On the lower level stood an armored knight. Sigil paused to look at the figure while the elite knight sprinted forward.

"Captain!" Oscar shouted joyously.

"Ah, Oscar! It's so good to see you again!" The knight said as he grabbed Oscar in a bear hug. Sigil flinched as he seemed to hear Oscar's armor creak from the pressure.

"And who is this? A friend of yours?" The knight asked as he set Oscar down on the ground.

"This is Sigil of Lordran. Sigil, this is Solaire of Astora. He was the captain of my squad!" Oscar introduced them, admiration almost dripping off of his voice.

Solaire strode forward and grabbed Sigil's hand in a firm handshake. Sigil grimaced as he felt his bones grind against one another. When he shook his hand, Solaire took notice.

"Oh, my apologies! Sometimes I don't know my strength. It's so hard to tell with the gauntlets." The knight-captain apologized profusely.

"It's fine. Now that we're finished with pleasantries, we need your help." Sigil stated.

Despite wearing a helmet, Solaire seemed to turn from jovial to deadly serious.

"I assume it has to do with that drake?" Solaire guessed.

"Correct. We need to get past it to reach the Parish." Sigil replied.

"I was studying that bridge earlier. There seems to be a pair of staircases that lead to the supports of the bridge. I assume you can sneak into the Parish through the passages underneath." Solaire explained.

"Let's go then." Sigil spoke.

* * *

They took turns sprinting to the aforementioned staircases. Each time one of them reached the staircase, the Drake would bathe the entirety of the bridge in flame for a few seconds. When everyone had descended, they took some time to explore the small room they were in.

"Hey! Come look at this!" Sigil shouted from beyond a small corridor.

Solaire and Oscar strolled over. At the end of the corridor was a ladder, leading down to the bonfire that had served as their forward camp.

"Well, at least we won't have to run across the entire town just to get back here," Oscar observed.

"Let us rest here for a while, then we shall engage in jolly cooperation!" Solaire exclaimed as he slid down the ladder.

"He was your captain?" Sigil quietly asked.

"Don't underestimate him. He may have a heart of gold, but he could probably kill either one of us in an instant." Oscar whispered back.

They then slid down the ladder and took their seats next to the fire, preparing for their next battle.

* * *

**And that's the chapter. So lately, I've been mooching off of Infernus Fenris's editors for, well, editing. So I finally decided to set up a discord server for my writing stuff. I'm still working on the kinks, but anyone who wants to can join! If you want to join, just PM me! (I also do some streaming stuff on there but haven't for a while).**

**Thanks for reading! Be sure to review!**


	5. Chapter 5: Parish the thought

**Alright, everyone. Sorry for the long delay. Like really long. I should probably post *Hiatus* or something like that next time. Sorry once again. In this chapter we'll get to see...well you'll see.**

**I hope you all have a wonderful day!**

* * *

"Are we ready to head out?" Sigil asked as he strapped several throwing knives to his belt. The others nodded. They climbed up the ladder and began their journey.

Beyond the ladder and the small room next to it was an underpass, just as Solaire had said there was. Sigil walked across first but paused when he heard something.

The quiet crunch of gravel underfoot to his right.

He barely had time to react as a hollow soldier slashed at him, sparks flying from the stone as the blade bounced off.

Sigil grabbed the hollow's arm and yanked to the side, throwing the hapless creature off the edge. There was a faint _crunch_ when it hit the ground below.

A pike slashed open the thief's cheek as he leaped back. The hollow hid behind its large shield, seemingly daring the thief to strike. Sigil grinned and swung the zweinhander overhead. The blow crushed the hollow between the ground and its shield. Solaire laid a hand on sigil's shoulder.

"Excellent work Sir Sigil! Please, stay back and heal while I push forward. It wouldn't do us much good if you were struck down now!" Solaire offered.

Sigil nodded and moved to the back of the line. When they reached the other side, Solaire signaled for them to stop. He drew his sword and charged into the room in front of them. Several loud squeaks and yells were heard.

"You can come in!" Solaire shouted.

Sigil and Oscar were greeted with the sight of a bloody Solaire surrounded by several dead giant rats.

"Impressive" Sigil said as he surveyed the room.

"Why thank you! It is quite the shame I had to dirty my crest, but I'm sure the blood will wash out." Solaire replied with a chuckle.

They continued on, climbing up a ladder in a small side chamber before filing up a narrow, curving set of stairs. They were soon presented with two choices: exit out through a doorway or continue up.

"I think we should check what's at the top before moving on." Sigil proposed.

"A sound idea Sir Sigil, lead the way!" Solaire spoke. Sigil slowly crept up the stairs, dagger drawn and buckler held out. He peaked over the edge of the next floor...

Before immediately jumping back when a massive blade whistled over his head.

"Damn! Another one of those black knights!" Sigil cursed.

"Did you see what he was wielding?" Oscar inquired.

"A massive greatsword, about as long as me." Sigil replied.

"If you don't mind, allow me to handle this," Solaire spoke as he strode forward, blade drawn. Sigil and Oscar cautiously watched from behind him.

The black knight was almost identical in appearance to the one Sigil had faced, save for the even larger sword it wielded.

The knight rested the blade upon its right shoulder before pausing, staring in something akin to recognition. A small jet of steam puffed out of its helmet.

Solaire raised his shield with something akin to melancholy.

The knight swung the blade with all its might, smashing into Solaire's shield.

_CLANG_

The man hardly budged.

In fact, he shoved the blade away, throwing the knight off balance.

With a single slash, Solaire decapitated the enemy. A stream of hot gas hissed out of the stump as it collapsed to its knees and evaporated into souls.

Solaire bent down and picked up a piece of titanite before tossing it to Sigil.

"Tell me, Oscar, are you still using that blessed sword of yours?" Solaire asked as he sheathed his blade. The elite knight nodded.

"Shame, you really should learn how to rely on normal steel and your own strength. No matter, I suppose a fool like me isn't one to judge." Solaire sighed.

"I'll try as hard as I can Sir!" Oscar said.

Solaire laughed, "Excellent, that's the enthusiasm I like to hear!"

"If you don't mind my prying Sir Solaire, did you know that knight back up there?" Sigil inquired. Solaire seemed to twitch slightly before shaking his head.

"Tell me Sigil, have you ever heard the tragedy of Gwyn's black knights?" Solaire asked. Sigil shook his head.

"Ah, once again my foolishness has shown by assuming someone as young as you would know such an old tale. For you see, when The old Witch of Izalith attempted to rekindle the Great Flame, she created the forces of Chaos. Gwyn and his personal detachment of mighty knights attempted to purge that blight from this world. Do you know what chaotic flames do Sir Sigil? Oh, forgive me, another foolish assumption on my part. One of Chaos's foulest creations were its flames. Flames so intense they could scorch the very soul. The silver armor of Gwyn's proud knights was blackened, as well as their souls. They remained fiercely loyal to Gwyn, but alas, that loyalty was their downfall." Solaire paused for a moment to look at the sky.

"For when Lord Gwyn disappeared, so did their reason for being. They now wander about uselessly, attacking anything that approaches them. I was merely saddened to put down what was once a warrior many times greater than myself, nothing more. Forgive me one last time, I did not mean to make the atmosphere so depressing!" Solaire finished with a sad chuckle.

"It's quite fine. Also, please, refer to me as Sigil. I don't deserve to be called "sir" by a man of your stature." Sigil said.

"Likewise, whenever a person calls me "sir" I blush out of embarrassment. Oscar, that goes for you as well!" Solaire spoke with a hearty laugh.

"Yes, si- I mean Solaire!" Oscar stuttered.

* * *

The group walked down the stairs and out the doorway they had discovered. To the left lay a large chamber, and to the right an open gateway. Checking the chamber, the party found a bonfire and a strange statue.

"Uhh, Solaire?" Sigil asked.

"Hm?"

"Why...why is there a statue of you here?" Sigil inquired.

"Oh? Oh that old thing! That isn't actually a stone imitation of myself, but rather the long since passed Firstborn of Gwyn, the Warriors of Sunlight!" Solaire explained with a laugh.

"The Warriors on Sunlight? I can't say I've heard of them." Sigil said before cringing. He could almost see the scowl under Solaire's helmet.

"Bah, curse the Way of the White. I swear if you so much as speak one word about another covenant they would behead you on the spot! No matter, I shall enlighten you, hehe pardon the pun, about the Warriors of Sunlight! In short, we are but a humble band of men and women each seeking our own sun!" Solaire explained excitedly.

"...Excuse me?" Sigil asked.

"You see, the sun is the source of light and life on this earth. Lord Gwyn is the Lord of Sunlight, as he is the embodiment of the sun's light and power. We of the Warriors seek to find our own personal sun to give us our own fount of strength and light!" He turned toward the sun and sighed. "If only I could be as grossly incandescent."

"Right, shall we rest at the fire and continue on?" Sigil said, only mildly concerned for Solaire's sanity.

"Oh, of course, I'll stand here if you don't mind," Solaire spoke while still facing the sun.

* * *

After resting, they began walking toward the gateway. A single hollow in rusting armor dashed forward, only to be cut in half by Sigil's blade.

The gateway led to a large courtyard. Nearly half a dozen hollows, armed with various weapons, stood in different positions. In front of the gateway on the other side stood a massive boar covered in plate mail, its eyes glowing a murderous red. Upon spotting them, one of the hollows ran back and closed the gates behind the boar.

"Curses, a fang boar. Stay clear of those tusks my good friends, lest they rend you to pieces." Solaire warned while Sigil and Oscar nodded in response.

Fours of the hollows charged with boar, two on either side.

Sigil took the left, Oscar the right, and Solaire the middle.

One of Oscar's hollows thrust its spear forward.

Oscar parried it to the side, shattering the rotten wood, before stabbing the hollow twice.

Before its companion could fall to the ground, the 2nd hollow had its throat cut out.

Sigil's hollows stuck close together as they both attempted to stab him.

He replied by cleaving the two of them in half with a single stroke.

The board charged toward Solaire, cracking the stone underneath its hooves with its speed.

Solaire leaped into the air, smashing the creature's snout into the ground with his landing.

Dashing across its back, Solaire landed behind it and spun around.

The only unarmored place on the boar was the tail and the area just under it.

Solaire grimaced as he shoved the blade into the beast.

The boar squealed as its insides were cut apart, before collapsing and exploding into souls.

Three crossbow bolts shattered on the ground around them.

"Quick! To that cellar!" Sigil shouted as he pointed toward a downward staircase near the opposing gateway.

The three dashed in as more bolts rained down upon them.

They took a moment to catch their breath as soon as they were in cover.

"Tell me Sigil, how did you learn to master the greatsword in such a manner? I've scarcely met thieves who could wield a longsword, let alone a weapon as hefty as yours." Solaire inquired.

"Training, and a few books." Sigil replied as he rested the flat of the blade on his shoulder. Solaire nodded, impressed.

They all turned upon hearing a hiss from around the corner. As soon as they did, a hollow clothed in sackcloth ran away.

"I suppose it would be rude to not follow him, would it not?" Solaire asked. The others nodded.

Sigil dashed after the creature into a large room.

Three more hollows sprung out from behind tables and columns.

Sigil gripped the Zweihander and spun with all his strength.

The first hollow turned with something akin to a grin, only to scowl at the fact that the would-be ambushers had all been cleaved in half.

Two more followed behind it as it charged toward Sigil.

Oscar and Solaire leaped forward, cutting the attackers to pieces.

"Nice job." Sigil spoke.

They spent a few minutes searching the room, only finding a few souls and a key.

After climbing up a pair of ladders and killing another pair of hollows, the group reached an intersection.

To the right lay a corridor leading to a terrace and a strange knight, and to the left lay yet another intersection.

Sigil walked up to the knight.

It spun around, growling.

Sigil swung his blade toward it-

_CLANG_

Only to be parried.

He hopped back before he could be impaled by the hollow knight's rapier.

Sigil's hand whipped forward as he threw a knife into the knight's side, causing it to stumble.

Drawing his bandit's knife, sigil stabbed the knight once, twice, thrice in the stomach. It gurgled for a few moments before becoming still.

Sigil inspected the hollow's helmet while Solaire and Oscar approached.

"A balder knight?" Sigil asked aloud.

"Indeed," Solaire replied.

"I'd heard tales of the knights of Balder trying to invade Lordran after the plague of undead, but I never thought the rumors to be true." Sigil sighed before letting the head fall to the floor with a _CLUNK._

Two more hollow spearmen and another Balder knight, this time armed with a strange long sword, attacked the group in a narrow corridor. The hollows were quickly cut to pieces.

"There's the church!" Sigil said as he pointed past the stone courtyard between them and the old building. Several hollows blocked the path.

The group charged forward, cutting the hollows down one by one. To their left lay a large doorway leading into the church, and to the right was a corridor leading to an ominous clanging with a fortress in the distance.

They walked down the long corridor. It led to a medium-sized room with a few shattered statues. After descending two flights of stairs, they found and rested at a bonfire.

Strolling down another set of stairs, the group was met with the sight of a pile of tools, weapons, and a burly blacksmith.

The man seemed to be about six and a half feet tall. He was shirtless save for a thick leather apron, most likely there to catch sparks and hot flakes of metal. His arms were the size of tree trunks and his beard reached down to his waist as he leaned over and hammered a sword into shape. He paused and looked up at the new arrivals.

"Greetins, I am Andre of Astora. If ya require smithin', I can certainly help ya." The smith spoke before returning to his work.

"Why are there so many Astorans here?" Sigil quietly asked Oscar, who shrugged in response.

Each of the adventurers introduced themselves.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet ya. Now, is there anythin' I can help ya with?" He inquired. Sigil nodded.

"I have a sword that needs improvement." Sigil said as he carefully passed the Zweihander to the smith, who easily grabbed and lifted it with a single hand.

"It's a mighty fine sword ya have there, I'll give ya that. However, I can't do anythin' if ya don't have titanite." The smith answered.

"Titanite?" Sigil asked.

"The metal of the gods. It can be molded into any shape and can make a dull rusted blade cut through steel like butter. It's a grayish metal." The smith explained.

"I've got two chunks here, would these work?" Sigil offered the metal over.

"Ah, perfect! I'll have to break 'em up, but this should give yer blade a much better edge. Pass some souls over, would ya?" The smith requested.

* * *

About an hour later, the job was complete. The edge of the blade seemed to shimmer with a newfound deadliness. Sigil swung it around a few times.

"Now don't go cuttin' yer head off. Would be a shame to see ya turn hollow." The smith said with a laugh as the group departed.

They climbed back up the surface and killed the hollows guarding the church entrance once more. Sigil peered inside. To the left were a cluster of balder knights and to-

_SLAM_

The tip of a massive mace caught Sigil in the chest and sent him flying back. He tumbled into Oscar, who barely stopped him from flying off the edge of the courtyard into to a ravine.

Out from the shadows of the church stepped a massive knight clad in black steel armor. He easily stood nine feet tall with a mace as large as him. Growling a challenge, the knight raised his eight-foot-tall shield.

"A Berenike knight," Solaire observed.

"A what?" Sigil asked as he took a swig of estus.

"Berenike was a kingdom allied with Balder. They invaded Lordran alongside the Balders when the undead plague came about. I assume all that's left are hollows such as this one. I think I'll let you handle it Oscar." Solaire said as he took a seat.

"What?! Me?!" Oscar exclaimed.

"Of course, a lumbering oaf such as this should be mere child's play for someone like you." Solaire spoke confidently.

Oscar tightened his grip on his sword before dashing forward.

He slashed at the knight but left barely a scratch on his armor.

The knight swung the mace overhead and into the ground where Oscar had been standing, carving a crater into the brick.

Oscar searched frantically for any weaknesses in the armor, calling upon all his learning regarding combat.

The joints!

He waited with his shield up, inviting the hollow to strike.

When the knight finally did swing, Oscar bashed the mace away with such force that he seemed to almost throw himself at it.

With the knight knocked off balance to the side, Oscar grasped the opportunity and ran his blade through the unarmored armpit joint.

The holy steel blade went through the armpit, nicked the lungs, and pierced the hollow's throat.

It collapsed to its knees, choking on its blood before exploding into souls.

Oscar fell to his knees, panting. Solaire laid an armored hand on his shoulder.

"Well done! I knew you could conquer such a foe!" Solaire applauded.

"Th-thank you." Oscar stuttered as he got up. They walked into the church.

Solaire strode over to a shrine dedicated to some forgotten god. On top of it lay the decaying body of a long-dead maiden. He grabbed a writhing white growth on its chest and held it out to Sigil.

"What exactly is that?" Sigil inquired as he held it.

"That would be the soul of this firekeeper," Solaire said as he pointed to the body.

"Her soul? Why does it look more like a parasite?" Sigil asked.

"It's a bit complicated to ex- GAH" Solaire shouted as a bolt of magic struck him in the side of the head. He whipped to the right and looked up. Sigil and Oscar followed his gaze.

On top of a balcony, a figure wielding a golden trident and robes made of chainmail began dancing as a magic circle glowed around him.

"Quickly! To that staircase!" Solaire shouted as he ran towards a staircase next to the shrine. The other two followed as more magical bolts followed them.

In the stairwell stood a balder knight, who was cut down by Solaire before it even had the chance to draw its blade.

"Who. _huff_. Was that?" Oscar asked.

"That was a magic channeler. They serve Seath the Scaleless. I didn't expect to find one here." Solaire explained.

"Let's go kill the bastard then," Sigil muttered as he continued on.

The stairwell led to two more hallways. At the end of the second laid a large room. Stepping into the room, Sigil was immediately surrounded by a dozen hollows. They were only armed with shattered swords. Behind them stood the channeler.

It had a tall helmet with 6 eyes embedded in it. The chainmail rings formed peculiar patterns and symbols on its robes. It began performing a strange dance as the weapons of the hollows began to glow. It was akin to a dark parody of a preacher and their congregation.

The hollows charged forward.

Swinging his blade, sigil cut through five of the hollows like a scythe through wheat.

One of the creatures managed to nick sigil with its blade. It cut through his leather armor like it wasn't there.

Sigil threw a knife into the hollows throat and continued slaughtering the rest.

When all of the peons were dead, the channeler took a nervous step backward.

"No more bodies to throw at me?" Sigil said with a sardonic laugh.

The channeler vainly tried shooting a magical arrow at the thief.

Sigil dodged it with ease and brought his blade down upon the sorcerer's head, cleaving it in two.

Kicking the body off his sword, Sigil rested against a pillar and waited for the others.

"You need to stop rushing ahead." Oscar admonished him.

"I got the job done, didn't I?" Sigil replied flippantly. Solaire merely sighed.

"What was that magic anyway?" Sigil asked.

"I believe it was the spell 'Soul Arrow'. Most offensive magic targets the opponent's soul and body directly, rendering armor useless. As you can see." Solaire took his helmet off.

Underneath was a man in his mid-40s, with bright, golden blonde hair and a trimmed beard. On the right side of his face was a large crust of dried blood, despite the lack of damage to his helmet. He took a sip of his own estus flask before putting the helmet back on.

"Shall we continue?" Solaire asked. The others nodded.

* * *

Walking into a small side room, the group climbed up two sets of ladders before coming before a fog wall.

"Be on the ready," Oscar said.

They strode through the fog. On the other side, they stood atop the roof of the church. Directly across from them lay the belfry.

Slowly starting to approach it, the group halted upon hearing the cracking of stone. On top of the bell tower, a large stone gargoyle began to shift and move. Scant moments later, the stone on the beast cracked and broke off like eggshell. The gargoyle wielded a massive halberd and a huge buckler, with a double-headed ax instead of a tail. The beast howled in anger before charging the trio.

All three of them rolled to opposing sides as the halberd was swung vertically into the ground. Sigil and Oscar stabbed the beast's sides while Solaire retrieved a strange talisman from a satchel on his belt. The beast howled in pain and flew back.

Suddenly, another beast landed next to it. It lacked both a tail and buckler, but quickly revealed what it had to compensate for such losses. Unhinging its jaw, it breathed out a wave of fire. Sigil slapped his arm as his bracer had caught fire while Oscar hid behind a statue.

Solaire drew his arm back as if to throw a javelin. When his arm shot forward, so did a bolt of lightning. The bolt struck the firebreathing gargoyle in the skull, filling the air with the smell of burnt flesh as it collapsed. The armored gargoyle howled in anger at the loss of its brethren and renewed its assault twofold.

Solaire threw another lightning bolt, striking the beast in the wing and grounding it. Sigil brought his blade down and lopped off its head. The two bodies exploded into souls as the party sat down to rest.

"Why the hell were gargoyles guarding the bell?" Sigil groaned.

"Gargoyles were the guard dogs of the gods during the golden times. It wouldn't be far fetched to think they would be used to guard something as important as a Bell of Awakening." Solaire replied.

Sigil hopped up to his feet and stretched for a few moments.

"Oscar do you want to ring the bell?" Sigil asked.

The knight shook his head. "I had my chance. Go on ahead, we'll stay down here."

Sigil nodded and jogged over to the belfry. Inside there was yet another ladder. After clambering up it, Sigil sighed as he stepped outside onto a small ledge. Yet another ladder.

He slowly climbed up it, taking the time to admire the view of the mountains and rivers surrounding him. When he reached the top, he was greeted by the sight of a massive bell and lever. He yanked on the lever and stood back. The deep bonging of the bell seemed to echo across the land. Sigil climbed down the external ladder and slid down the internal one. The second his feet touched the ground, he was startled by someone.

"Greetings. I am Oswald of Carim, the pardoner. Thou art a friend? For thee, a warm welcome. Cometh thou to confess? Or to accuse? For indeed all sin is my domain." A man robed in black spoke. Sigil cautiously eyed the sword at his hip before shaking his head.

"Not today." Sigil answered before making for the exit.

"Thou art welcome anytime. It is only human to commit a sin... Heh heh heh heh..." The man chuckled ominously.

Sigil resisted the urge to shiver as he strolled back to Oscar and Solaire.

"Well done Sigil!" Oscar congratulated as he laid a gauntlet on the thief's shoulder.

Before immediately stepping back as Sigil was lifted up in a bear hug by Solaire.

"Well done indeed! This calls for a celebration! Oh praise the sun!" Solaire shouted as he slightly crushed Sigil.

"Solaire! M-my spiiinnee!" Sigil begged.

"Oh, my apologies! This armor really does hamper my ability to restrain myself!" Solaire laughed.

* * *

They climbed back down into the chamber where Sigil had slain the channeler.

"Solaire, you seemed to dislike that channeler, could you tell us why?" Oscar asked.

"Dislike is too gentle a word for my disposition toward them." Solaire spat out almost venomously. "Those swine are responsible for kidnapping people, mainly young maidens, for whatever foul experiments that slimy lizard Seath is up to."

"Look at it this way, at least the bastard won't be able to harm anyone again." Sigil offered. Solaire nodded.

"Thank you Sigil, I needed that assurance," Solaire said with a sigh.

"Hello! Is anyone there? I am in need of assistance!" A voice called out from a hallway to the side. The trio looked at each other before nodding and walking down the hallway. At the end of it laid a rotting door, easily kicked down by Sigil. Up a small set of stairs was a door of iron bars.

"I see you're still human. Then I am in luck. As you can see, I am stuck without any means of recourse. Until you came along of course." The voice spoke.

Sigil looked past the bars. Inside a small chamber sat a man clad in golden armor. On both hips a pair of long, scythe-like blades sat. The figure spoke. His voice was smooth like his armor but oily.

"It's a pleasure to meet you."

"My name is Lautrec. Lautrec of Carim."

* * *

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